Mochida Family, Tagged, Headed To Internment Camp (1942)

While the United States acted with incredible bravery during World War II, one grievous mistake we made was the internment of Japanese-Americans, who were considered suspect merely because we were at war with the land of their ancestry. One such family forced to relocate from their home and community into a camp was the Mochidas of Hayward, California, seen in the above classic photograph, which was taken by the great Dorothea Lange. The original caption:

“Members of the Mochida family awaiting evacuation bus. Identification tags are used to aid in keeping the family unit intact during all phases of evacuation. Mochida operated a nursery and five greenhouses on a two-acre site in Eden Township. He raised snapdragons and sweet peas. Evacuees of Japanese ancestry will be housed in War Relocation Authority centers for the duration.”